Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas limited (NLNG) Managing Director, Mr. Tony Attah, has described NIPCO Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) terminal as a world class facility.
He described the plant as a game changer in the industry, adding that it could assist the nation effectively.
Attah spoke during a facility tour of NIPCO terminal in Lagos. He said the operations and the human capital of the company were worthy of emulation in the quest to deepen LPG access nationwide.
“I never in my wildest imagination believed that this kind of facility exists in Apapa. The mental picture I have of Apapa is just a congested area, but coming to NIPCO, I can see that beyond the congestion, there is quite a lot of value for Nigeria through the operations of NIPCO Plc,” he said.
The NLNG chief noted that NIPCO does not only have an advantage of operating in front of three or four jetties receiving both white products and gas but also investing heavily to upscale the amount of LPG that it can be received into its facility.
Attah said: “For me NIPCO is a real game changer and we are committed to continue to support the company and indeed Nigeria to bring about the positive change in terms of energy availability for Nigeria.”
He noted that there is a big scope for the company to strengthen the handshake, deepen the partnership between NLNG and NIPCO, adding “we stay committed to the partnership and most importantly, we stay committed to Nigeria.”
Attah restated NLNG’s commitment to Nigeria, stressing that the company’s vision is to be a global player in the LNG market and to help build a better Nigeria, adding that part of it is its direct involvement in the LPG space.
He said as at 2007, Nigeria was doing only about 50,000 tonnes of LPG before NLNG gom glad to say that as at 2016, NLNG’s LPG contribution to Nigeria was well over 25,000 tonnes with a plan to increase it to 300,000 tonnes this year.
NIPCO Group Managing Director, Mr. Venkataraman Venkatapathy, confirmed NLNG as the biggest producer of LPG locally and has played commendable role in supplying LPG for domestic consumption.
He recalled that NIPCO’s entry into the LPG business in 2009 was in apparent response to Federal Government’s call for genuine investors to improve LPG access to Nigerians through provision of infrastructure that could aid supply.
According to him, the historic completion of the 4,800 MT facilities in 2008 and the unparalleled support of NLNG encouraged NIPCO to commence construction of the largest LPG facility in Africa (5,000MT) in continuous effort to improve access, facilitate gas evacuation across the country and quick turnaround of NLNG vessels.
He told the visiting NLNG delegation that safety remains the company’s watchword as it has never experienced any lost time injury (LTI) in its operations since 2009.
Venkatapathy informed the team that NIPCO has excellent relationship with off-takers for obvious reasons including proximity to jetty, enduring LPG business operations, improved loading and weighing facilities to ensure accuracy of product loaded, and faster turnaround, among others. These factors make NIPCO first choice LPG terminal.
